


Maternal Manipulations

by RedDragon30000



Category: Star Trek: Voyager
Genre: Gen, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-07
Updated: 2020-12-22
Packaged: 2021-03-09 23:33:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,387
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27934678
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RedDragon30000/pseuds/RedDragon30000
Summary: A sequel to 'The Borg Queen's Displeasure'. Still held captive by the Borg Queen, Seven of Nine struggles to resist the call of the Collective, the urge to become part of the Many once again. Unfortunately, the Borg Queen is determined to bring her former drone back into the fold, and will use all her skill at manipulation to ensure she succeeds in doing so.
Kudos: 1





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> After writing my previous Voyager story, I became fascinated by the relationship between the Borg Queen and Seven of Nine, and wanted to explore things a bit more.

Black, metallic eyes, as black and cold as the void of space, tracked a lone human figure as it moved from console to console, manipulating information, absorbing it. Almost…. assimilating it. Of course, Seven of Nine could no longer assimilate information in the efficient way that the Borg could. No longer a drone, she had to rely on cumbersome human methods, and this limited her.

The Queen almost regretted needing Seven of Nine as an individual and making her a promise when she had implemented the punishment protocol a few hours ago. However, it was essential that she kept that promise. Breaking it could easily turn Seven of Nine against her true people, and the Queen had expended too much effort to let that happen.

As a drone, it was true that Seven of Nine would be part of the Many once more, that infuriating resistance washed away, obeying every order. However, it would be such as waste, her favourite drone had so much _potential_ , and it was easier to draw it out while the thoughts of Seven of Nine were her own.

The Queen’s observations of Seven of Nine were cut short by the voice of the collective echoing through her mind.

**Warning! Designation Seven of Nine, former drone, is attempting to access the central plexus of this Unimatrix. Countermeasures in place, but are being overcome. Deploying Four of Six and Two of Six to physically block access to Unimatrix systems.**

Two drones, who had been scanning for any signs of _Voyager_ from the other side of the Queen’s chambers, stepped away from their own consoles and began to make their way towards Seven. A faint smirk of amusement curled the Queen’s lips.

Her head twitched, minutely, and the two drones halted.

_No. I shall block her myself before she reaches anything damaging. We shall see how good her skills are._

The Queen watched Seven’s hands racing over the console, her tense posture betraying that she knew she was doing something forbidden, and was wary about being found out. One by one, the electronic defences that protected the Collective’s most critical knowledge were being worn down. As Seven overcome a key firewall, the Queen became more alert.

_Impressive, but time to end this._

Her right hand clenched into a fist, and Seven cried out in surprise and pain as a mild electric shock surged from the console and struck her, causing her to stumble backwards. Seven shuddered as her balance was restored by a solid entity behind her, holding her up, metallic fingers clutching her shoulder. Seven attempted to orient herself, her hands stinging and her implants buzzing unpleasantly. A soft, amused voice murmured;

“ _You are so impatient Seven of Nine. Such forbidden fruit is not yours for the taking. Not yet…_ ”

The knowledge that the Queen might permit her to access such restricted information was surprising, but welcome. If she was still so highly valued, she might be able to disrupt the Collective from within somehow. At least the Queen did not seem angry at her intrusion.

Pulling Seven around so that they were face-to-face, the Queen said:

“ _You have had the chance to study species 10026. What is the greatest biological benefit they possess?_ ”

Clasping her sore hands behind her back and trying to ignore the static fading from her optical implant, Seven replied:

“Their lifespan. They are able to live for three or four centuries unless killed by accidents or disease.”

“ _Biological weakness_?”

“Because of their lifespan, they have very few children, so if they were to become sterile, their race would become extinct.”

“ _Very good, precisely the conclusions we also came to_.”

Releasing Seven’s shoulder, the Queen waved a hand towards the former drone’s alcove.

“ _Get some rest, you will be very busy in the coming cycle._ ”

It would have been easy to reject such an order, to respond with an insolent comment about what the Queen would want her to do. However, Seven was now very wary about doing so. The Queen was clearly in no mood to have her authority questioned, and Seven had no wish to experience another punishment protocol so soon after the first one.

She went where she was told, grimacing as she flexed her sore fingers. Seven winced as a note of censure entered the Queen’s voice as she stepped into her alcove.

“ _The pain in your hands will remain as a warning,_ stay out of areas that do not concern you!”

Before she could begin the regeneration sequence, the Queen held up a hand, arresting the action. Stepping up to Seven, she ran a gentle hand along her face, cupping her chin. The irritation that Seven had heard just a moment before had melted away, as she purred:

“ _You have done so well in the last few hours; it seems a shame to spoil things with further recriminations. Rest well, there will be much for you to learn when you wake_.”

As she began the regeneration cycle, Seven was startled and very disturbed to feel a pair of warm lips brush her forehead as the Queen whispered into her mind:

_Rest well, my child._

The Queen considered her errant drone as the regeneration cycle took hold. She had previously decided to put Seven of Nine in charge of modifying an assimilation virus to infect humanity. However, after recent developments, that course of action might have to be changed. There were still many things that had to be done in order to manipulate Seven into embracing her Borg upbringing, but the Queen could afford to be patient. As long as _Voyager_ and the interfering Janeway did not make an appearance, she would succeed in this endeavour. Seven of Nine would give in eventually, she clearly felt isolated in this location. As long as the Queen continued to present herself as a benevolent maternal figure, her efforts would produce the desired result. 

If she could keep her former drone focussed on rare knowledge, on knowledge she wouldn’t be able to access on _Voyager_ , she would be less likely to think about escape. It was almost stimulating for the Queen to observe Seven of Nine’s stubborn nature and clear superior intellect to other humans. If she got this right, she might even be a successor if something…fatal occurred to herself.

Of course, Seven of Nine’s individuality would be likely to cause some rebellion. As long as she demonstrated the soft spot she had for her ‘favourite’ drone, Seven of Nine would not resent this rebellion being quashed. It might even be worthwhile to allow Seven of Nine to believe that she had some illusion of control.

The Queen was interrupted once again from her musings by the voice of the Collective.

**A vessel has been detected in spacial grid 436, trajectory 3361. Identification: modified Federation shuttle, designation ‘Delta Flyer’.**

The Queen’s eyes narrowed as she snarled mentally:

 _Janeway! Once again, she is attempting to interfere in our operations! Move the octahedron into the middle of the Unicomplex. I do_ not _want Janeway to be able to influence Seven of Nine!_

The Collective replied to this declaration somewhat cautiously:

**Designation One who is Many, former drone Seven of Nine should be re-assimilated. Her experiences would be added to our own directly. She is an individual now, that is an unacceptable state.**

Closing her eyes in exasperation at the Collective’s failure to grasp the subtleties of her plans, the Queen snapped:

 _Enough! I have my reasons for keeping her apart!_ _As an individual she can contribute so much more to the Collective. She will be part of the Many when she is ready for such a thing, and when I decide the time is right._

The reply from the Collective was slightly contrite.

**Designation One who is Many, there is consensus.**

The Queen smiled slightly as she opened her eyes. Her children could be infuriatingly slow to understand the aims of her thoughts and actions, but their thoughts always became one in the end.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I always got the impression that the Borg Queen was grooming Seven to be a replacement or a counterpart, so I thought I'd experiment with that concept a little.

Seven of Nine felt that there was something different about herself as her regeneration cycle ended. She couldn’t pin it down, not exactly, but her thoughts felt clearer, sharper. More alarmingly, the sight of the Queen should have filled her with apprehension and unease, yet her presence near the central alcove brought only a sense of familiarity.

The Queen smiled gently as Seven’s eyes locked onto her own, holding out an inviting hand.

“ _Come, I have something to show you, Seven of Nine._ ”

Cautiously, but also very curious, Seven came up to the Queen and cocked her head enquiringly.

Laying a hand on Seven’s shoulder, the Queen remarked softly:

“ _We have never told you before why we regard you as so unique, why you are our favourite drone. For you_ are _our favourite, and you must never forget that this is so. You have always been very good at adapting to new situations, at taking the unconventional approach. That is why we put you on_ Voyager _to speak for the Collective. That is why you survived and adapted when your scout ship crashed, and your link to us was severed. Let us see what you make of_ this _new information._ ”

Turning away from Seven, the Queen waved a hand towards the wall. Immediately, a large holographic screen appeared. What it showed caused Seven’s eyes to widen. It appeared to be an enormous web of light, constructed with individual green dots. As she stared at it, she knew for certain what was being shown, even without being told. She murmured in awe:

“The Collective!”

Beside Seven, the Queen struggled not to let her triumph show on her face. Her former drone’s reaction had been exactly what she’d hoped for. Stepping forward, the Queen remarked softly:

“ _You can do more than just look at the Collective. That is another reason why you are special. If you interface with the central alcove, you will understand._ ”

Once again, the Queen hid her triumph. To a limited human, Seven of Nine looked as stoic as she normally did. However, the Queen had known her for far longer, and was easily able to discern any fleeting emotion on those rare occasions where one of her drones possessed free will.

It was clear that Seven was conflicted, she seemed both curious, but worried. The Queen knew very well what was worrying her favourite drone, and murmured reassuringly:

“ _Your mind will not be submerged by the Many, you will still hear them, communicate with them, but you will be apart, as am I._ ”

Somewhat reassured, Seven moved to the central alcove and activated the console there. She stiffened suddenly, as the voice of the Collective, a whisper that had been ghosting at the edge of her mind ever since she had entered the Borg sphere, became startingly clear.

**Designation Seven of Nine, formally Tertiary Adjunct of Unimatrix 01. We hear you.**

Pushing away her discomfort with an effort, Seven closed her eyes and focussed on what she wanted to see. The screen on the wall shrank slightly, as Seven drew the central focus to any Borg vessels in the sector of space where _Voyager_ had last been.

The Queen, who had been expecting Seven’s first central action, took precautions to block access to the Collective’s tracking of the _Delta Flyer_. While it was clear that Seven would draw conclusions about the position of _Voyager_ , the moment she saw how close Janeway was, all the Queen’s hard work thus far would be ruined.

Seven mused on the information she had received, seeing that two cubes were travelling on a parallel course to _Voyager_ , likely keeping track of them. They were travelling on a circular course in Borg space, it was likely they were searching for her, since they hadn’t removed themselves from the danger of attack. At least the cubes were not a threat to _Voyager_ on their current course.

Frowning slightly, Seven considered what the Queen had told her, that she could do more than just _look_ at the Collective. If that were true, she might be able to do something concrete. Focussing on the cubes, Seven was startled to suddenly hear thousands of muted voices, all speaking at once. After a moment of reflection, she realised that she was hearing the drones on the cubes.

Resolving to reflect on _that_ issue later on, Seven deliberately shifted the screen to another sector, showing a planet where _Voyager_ had previously encountered the Kazon. While the Queen was distracted by the change on the screen, Seven hastily attempted to narrow her focus on the drones she could hear on the cubes. Eventually only hearing one voice, Seven smirked at the successful result. The voice of the drone was as clear to her as if it was standing right next to her.

 **Transwarp engine out of alignment by .2 microns. This drone must align the engine perfectly.**

This was exactly what she’d been hoping for, connecting to a maintenance drone. Very cautiously, she opened her mind to the other drone, startled to realise its designation without being told. Another puzzle to solve later.

*Two of four, Secondary Adjunct of Unimatrix 04, disalign the engine. Otherwise your vessel will run into an ion storm and become damaged.*

Seven was doubtful that this would work, as the Two of Four was connected to the Hive Mind and could verify from the other drones on the cube about a potential ion storm. However, to her surprise, the drone replied:

 **I will comply**.

A few moments later, Seven smirked as the cube veered slightly off course and away from _Voyager’s_ own course. Now for the other cube….

Still pretending to be distracted by the screen change, the Queen raised an eyebrow as the voice of one of her drones became slightly fainter. Just as she had planned, Seven of Nine was discovering her potential, her talents. Talents she could only utilise with the Borg, and not with lesser species. She smirked as cube 562 began to deviate from it’s confirmed course.

_Clever, my child, very clever. We suppose such a change can be allowed._

She would be able to stop things before Seven could do anything that harmed her plans, but could easily allow Seven of Nine to believe that _she_ had control, that she was outsmarting her true Mother. 


End file.
